Manufacturers do not need more data for its own sake. They need information that helps people see a problem earlier, plan with greater confidence and act before lost time becomes lost output.
The second session at the UKFT Weaving Conference, ‘Innovation Applied’, looks at how bespoke technologies can support that work. Adam Cooperman of Slurp n' Learn will discuss AI, Laura Hayes of Gemell will cover digital twins, and Paul Mendis of PMSS Academy of Advanced Manufacturing will examine digital dashboards. The Manufacturing Technology Centre will also outline their latest developments.
Each subject addresses a different part of the same operational question: how can a business turn production activity into clearer decisions? A digital twin can help teams model a process or asset before making a physical change. A well-designed dashboard can bring the right measures together without forcing managers to search across disconnected systems. AI can support planning and analysis where the data and business case are sound. Connected factory thinking can link those elements across the operation.
The value of the session is its manufacturing focus. Delegates can listen for the practical conditions that make technology useful: reliable data, defined ownership, staff confidence, integration with existing equipment and a clear problem to solve.
These are often more important than the headline attached to the software.
For weaving businesses at an early stage of digitisation, the session can help clarify where to begin. For businesses already investing, it offers a chance to compare approaches and identify gaps. Technology providers, researchers and manufacturers will be in the same venue, allowing the discussion to continue beyond the presentations.
Productivity improves when information reaches the right person in time to influence an outcome. This session is designed to help manufacturers assess how that principle can be applied in their own mills and factories.
Reserve your conference ticket and hear how connected manufacturing tools are being applied to planning, performance and production.
Event details: 8 October 2026 | 9am–5pm, followed by networking dinner | Cedar Court Hotel, Huddersfield
KEY SPEAKERS:
- Laura Hayes is Strategic Partnerships and Commercial Lead at Gemell, where she leads thedevelopment of the company’s commercial strategy and works closely with suppliers and manufacturers around the world to bring Gemell’s digital twin technology to market. Over the past decade, Laura has built global partnerships with leading brands, mills and manufacturers to accelerate sustainable innovations and emerging materials from development through to commercialisation and scale. Her work sits at the intersection of innovation, strategic partnerships and sustainability. Laura is also a regular writer and speaker on innovation and sustainability.
Gemell is a material visualisation company at the intersection of sustainability, innovation and AI, revolutionising how textile brands, suppliers and manufacturers create and interact with digital versions of yarns and fabrics.
The company uses manufacturing data to create highly accurate 3D digital fabrics, eliminating the need to physically produce up to 70% of fabric samples and helping the industry reduce waste, cost and time. Gemell has established technology partnerships with leading digital design platforms, including Browzwear, helping brands and manufacturers accelerate digital product development and bring innovations to market faster.
- Paul Mendis is the Founder and CEO of PMSS Academy of Advanced Manufacturing, and a coach and expert in manufacturing digitalisation. He has 20 years of manufacturing experience across five countries, including nine years as General Manager of Industrial Engineering at Crystal Martin Ceylon, leading lean transformation across six factories. His career also spans Ford UK Halewood, Nestlé Waters Buxton, Gokaldas Exports in India, and Style Textile in Pakistan. Paul holds a BSc in Applied Science (Textile) from RMIT University, an MBA from Anglia Ruskin University, a GSD Practitioner Licence, a Lean Brown Belt, and an AOTS certificate from Japan.
PMSS Academy of Advanced Manufacturing helps UK manufacturers achieve operational excellence, closing the gap between where they are and where they need to be. Using the AURA framework, Audit, Uplift, Results, Anchor, PMSS combines hands-on lean manufacturing expertise with practical digital transformation, from factory floor process improvement to ERP selection and implementation. PMSS builds in-house capability directly within manufacturing teams, turning strategy into measurable change on the shop floor rather than leaving it on a slide. PMSS is a member of ASBCI and the Huddersfield Textile Society.
- Adam Cooperman is a certified AI solutions architect and founder of the York AI community, SAlurp n' Learn. For the past three years, he has worked closely with organisations to help them understand and implement AI responsibly, with a focus on bias, risk, governance and practical adoption. With more than 20 years' experience in IT and automation, Adam has worked with organisations ranging from Formula 1 teams to Fortune 10 enterprises. His work bridges technical capability and organisational reality, helping leaders make informed, compliant and commercially sound decisions about AI.
Slurp n' Learn is an AI education and community initiative based in York. It brings together practitioners and leaders to learn, share, and problem-solve around responsible AI adoption. Through peer learning, workshops, and practical frameworks, Slurp n' Learn helps organisations understand how to implement AI responsibly addressing governance, bias, compliance, and real-world challenges, believing that AI adoption should be fair, compliant, and aligned with organisational values.
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